FG to restructure ‘Project Act Nollywood’ with N3bn grant

June 27, 2016

The Federal Government is organising a workshop for stakeholders aimed at restructuring and reinvigorating Project ACT Nollywood, the N3billion grant programme established by the federal government to solve the main challenges impeding the growth of the Nigerian movie industry.

The workshop, which is scheduled for Friday, July 1, 2016, would be attended by key stakeholders in the Nigerian Film industry, such as the Federal Ministry of Information and Culture, the leadership of Nollywood, the Actors Guild, Film and Videos Censors Board, The Nigerian Film Corporation and The Nigerian Copyright Commission.

The Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, the Convener of the workshop, in a statement made available to the Daily Times by the Director of Press, Salisu Na’inna Dambatta, stated that the ideas discussed during the workshop would be a part of the input for restructuring the project to ensure its sustainability.

Adeosun explained that, so far, the Project ACT Nollywood had implemented specialist training programmes in Nigeria and abroad in which 247 practitioners had been trained to improve their technical and professional capacities in the entertainment industry.

“Similarly, 113 film projects, employing 2,436 people, have been co-financed through grants from the fund at the cost of N799 million, while the Innovative Film Distribution Programme has been designed to support viable solutions in film distribution and the prevention of piracy. The World Bank has estimated that for each copy of a Nigerian film sold, nine pirated copies are sold,” she added.

The National Bureau for Statistics (NBS), has estimated that the Nigerian Film industry contributed 1.4 per cent to the country’s Gross Domestic Product in 2013 and 2014, and employed an estimated 250,000 people.